How it really is

Hudson Reporter, Letters to the EditorJul 19, 2015 | 1134 views Dear Editor:Jersey City is at an important point in its development. There are a number of new developments and residents coming into the city, many are young and start their families here. I wonder will we ever have a positive perception of our district schools just like suburban towns like Montclair. Unfortunately the wrong perception persists that one cannot receive a quality education in Jersey City Public Schools. This is simply false. Rather than exhibiting true leadership and helping to change the perception of Jersey City Public Schools, Superintendent Dr. Marcia Lyles has chosen to undermine the School district.Since Dr. Lyles has been here, she has managed to spend our money on hiring staff with six figure salaries, hiring connected outside contractors, and using overly expensive attorneys when we have attorneys on site. We pay the business administrator $180,000 plus benefits totaling $243,000 and yet this past year we had 2 schools without bathroom stall doors and broken sinks for over a year. Due to my advocacy, it was finally revealed that the trailers being used to house students are 37 years old, but that the life expectancy is only 20 years. Unfortunately, current district leadership would rather neglect our school facilities to the detriment of the students and the teachers. Let’s not forget the Source4Teachers contract for our substitutes. The district went over the allotted $4 million for the year and we were left to pay an additional $172,800 to the end of May. In the interim while the board was trying to figure out why the budget was exceeded, the schools went without subs for 11 days during the time of PARCC testing in May. She has also failed to recognize the diverse population of this city by not providing Halal meal options for its students despite the use of expensive food providers.As a taxpayer, parent and advocate, I’m concerned that the teachers are still unhappy even after the contract was settled. Dr. Lyles has chosen to violate the current contract with the rotation of classes at some of the high schools but claims its part of her job and her prerogative to do this. What does this say to the students of this district when the superintendent and the teacher’s union can’t work together? Our students are very lucky to have many outstanding teachers.Jersey City Public Schools needs a dynamic leader to run its schools. Why do parents choose charter vs district schools? Is it because of the innovative educational practices? Instead of reviewing and incorporating these methods and displaying dynamic leadership our district is solely focused on test scores. You can’t base success on student’s test scores and evaluate our teachers based on those scores. Unfortunately Dr. Lyles has not proven to be such a dynamic leader. It’s time to put Jersey City Public Schools first.Gina Verdibello Parent Advocate for Public School ChildrenJersey City